Register for next term by emailing me on monique@easynowmindfulness.com!!

We are also colouring again on Sunday, 10-12, at the Tawa Community Centre.

Good morning!!

Last week in the Creative Mindfulness Class ( you are welcome to our last meeting tomorrow in Tawa by the way) we did a mindfulness of thinking practice.

This is something you can easily try at home too.

The goal is to learn to notice the thoughts popping up in your mind (which is normal and happens all the time).

So no analysing, no judging, no liking, no disliking, just noticing every thought as it pops up in your mind, and disappears again.

When you become more aware of what is going on in your mind, you will get more control over your mind, and will be more able to decide what thoughts are helpful for you, and what thoughts are unhelpful. It will be easier to let those unhelpful thoughts pass by, by just noticing them and not giving them any more attention.

So this week, take a moment to find a nice quiet spot to sit, close your eyes, focus on your breathing for 10 breaths and than bring all your attention to your thinking. A couple of minutes to start with will be great!

Good morning and welcome to another week, and another little mindfulness workout!

Tomorrow CREATIVE MINDFULNESS starts, 7.30-9pm in Tawa, let me know if you want to join to learn and practice mindfulness AND work on your creative projects in a friendly and down to earth class.

Crocheters, knitters, colourers etc all welcome!!

>>>workout starts here<<<

Mindfulness is training your attention to be in the here and now, with an open and curious attitude, non judging of what is here.

Often we get stressed, by situations, by ourselves, by others. Mindfulness will not make stress never happen again, but it can help in managing stress, by doing just that: notice you get stressed!!

We can rage for some time, before we even notice what is actually going on with us. So that first step is the most important: notice that you are stressing out, looking at yourself.

Than be mindful of where in your body you feel stress, and just observe that. I find you are all clever people and usually once you learn to recognise the moment you are stressing out, and bringing your attention to your body, your feelings and what is going on in your mind, will give you a lightbulb moment as to what is going to be your next step. You can do this!

So no running away from stress, not beating yourself up about being stressed, just becoming aware of it is the way to move onwards. By practicing this, you will notice when you are being stressed much sooner, or you might even notice you are about to get stressed, and that is just great!!

Try it for a week and let me know if this is helpful,

have a great week,

M

🌷Healthy Mind, Happy Heart

ps Crocheting for calmness is so succesful, we are already taking bookings for next term!!

Holidays are over, all kids are back in school. So back to filling my classes for this term!

>>>The 8 week MBSR course that starts next Monday evening in Churton Park might be just right for you if you have done some mindfulness before, or if you are an absolute beginner, Very suitable for men, and women, and teens!

>>>The 6 week Creative Mindfulness on the Tuesday evening might be the one for you If you enjoy being creative, whether that is crochet, clouring, knitting or anything else AND you want to get into mindfulness.

Email me to register monique@easynowmindfulness.com or use the email now button at the top of this page.

FREE workout starts here:

Mindfulness can help to sleep better. I use mindfulness when I give my mind something to focus on, so it doesn’t go wild with worries!!

For me focussing on sounds works best. I start to pay attention to all that I can hear, just listening, not thinking about the sounds and not looking for sounds. This makes me feel relaxed and I sleep in no time!

So this week practice being mindful of sounds. Just bring your full attention to all you can hear, nearby and far away. Let me know if you get sleepy too!!

It helps in giving your brain a break from thinking and analysing and can be energising too.

We often stay at home, as the kids seem to be very happy just hanging around.

Even if you are not going to the sun, or the snow or anywhere els these two weeks, that doesn’t mean you can’t take some moments to yourself to chill! And when everybody is at home for 2 weeks, I really need to do this myself!!

So this week, make a list of things that you like to do, that are fun, relaxing, or a treat. Doesn’t have to be expensive!

Commit yourself to doing at least one item of the list every day. Even if it is just for 5 or 10 minutes, take that time for yourself.

My list so far:

-put my colouring calender back on the dining table, I don’t have to finish a whole colouring page, but I can sit down for 10 minutes and colour.

-sit on my balcony (it’s covered!), have my coffee or tea in peace.

-visit a museum/gallery.

-go for a walk at the beach.

– go for lunch with a friend.

-go for a coffee with a neighbour.

-discover more meditations on my mediation apps.

-browse crochet projects.

-make a zendoodle.

-do my yoga every day.

Have a great week!

Aroha nui,

M

🌷Healthy Mind, Happy Heart

ps. do you like the picture? My dream camper, one day it will happen 🙂

Most people will come up with “being in the here and now” or “being present” when they think about what mindfulness is.

And they are right! Mindfulness is bringing your full atttention to the present moment.

However that doesn’t mean that we cannot reflect upon things. It’s actually a healthy thing to do!

It’s good to take time to plan something, have a good think about something, when you decide when you want to do that. (Middle of the night is usually not a good time!)

Reflecting is not the same as overthinking, worrying or ruminating. If thinking makes you feel bad, that’s probably where you go wrong.

This week try to take a moment every day, to reflect upon a situation that happened that day or something you just want to have a good think about. You can ask yourself questions. What went well, what made it happen, how could things have worked out better etc etc.

Try to take one thing out of it, that you would like to improve on, and make that your goal for the next day, or the next time. And remember to be kind to yourself!

The holidays are over, we are still enjoying glorious days in Wellington, but I guess all is back to normal for all. It is easy to get lost in the daily grind, and not be living your life as fulfilling as you woud wish for.

That is why this week we’re going to keep an eye out for anything that excites us and makes us enthusiastic. If you spot this feeling, give it your full attention, notice where in your body you can feel it and take a couple of deep breaths to really feel the excitement and enthousiasm grow. Even if it is just a little thing or activity that gives a little spark of excitement, just give it all your attention. It can be something you see or hear maybe. If you find it hard to find anything at all, think about what you could do this week that might be exciting. Or think back about what has excited you before, that you could do again? Maybe as a child? And remember, this is about you, living a happy life, not about what others think about you.